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Monday, August 13, 2012

Who says you can’t have it all? The brand Gods, that’s who.

I was recently reminded of a
series of commercials that ran for the American beer Michelob Lite in the 1980s. Based
around the syrupy jingle “Who says you can’t have it all?”, the spots showed a
certain demographic, at the time called “yuppies”, who supposedly did have the
whole enchilada. As Hugh MacLeod points outs in his humorous, “do-the-work-you-love”
book Evil Plans:

The campaign for Michelob Lite beer tritely asked the
question “Who says you can’t love your work and leave it too?” as a sly
substitute for the question “Who says you can’t get great, satisfying taste in
a beer that also happens to be kind of light and watery.”

Some of the other themes in
the campaign included the head-scratching "Who says you can't be somebody and still be
you?" as well as the paean to lost youth "Who says you can't have pinstripes and rock﻿ and roll?" The answer in every case was an
emphatic “Oh yes you can!” (You can
check out one of the commercials here.)

The “Who says you can’t have
it all?” ad campaign only had a shelf-life of about a year and in hindsight it’s
not hard to see why. At its core, the brand was making a statement that’s just
not believable. In beer, as in life, there are usually trade-offs involved. And
while a beer with less calories may be a good thirst quencher, it probably
doesn’t qualify as “a super premium beer”, as Michelob Lite liked to refer to itself.

Today, there are more than
few brands who exhibit this same “over-promise, under deliver” behavior (I’m
talking to you, banking sector). But there are several companies and brands that
are doing an excellent job of nailing down their own unique market positioning by
promoting a product benefit that resonates and separates them from their
competitors. A few examples:

*Wendy’s.
I’m the opposite of a fast food fan, but I’m almost tempted to stop by a
Wendy’s. Their new ad campaign is centered around what’s called “Wendy’s Way” with an emphasis on high quality ingredients.
Check out their nifty Web site where you can tour a picturesque 3-D farmland
that brings to life the Wendy’s point of difference. Does Burger King or
McDonald’s use the same fresh ingredients? Probably. But for now at least,
Wendy’s has seized and owns the “fresh” mantle.

*Apple. I’ve seen several of the new “genius” commercials, and I’m
less than impressed, as are the critics. After years of superior advertising,
Apple has put out a series of corny slice-of-life spots about an employee from
their “Genius Bar” assisting customers in need. Yet, while the execution feels
very Dell/Best Buy-ish, they do point out a huge point-of-difference that Apple
has over these competitors—they offer great customer service from helpful
employees who really know their stuff.

*Meijer’s. In the supermarket category, I could tell you about the
superior shopping experience and quality of a Whole Foods or Wegman’s. But
instead I’d like to talk about convenience. As reported by the Zing! blog, the
Meijer chain has set up a radical new way to redeem coupons. Open an account at
their m-rewards Web site and you can
enter all the coupons you want online before you go to the store. Then, just enter
your mobile phone number at check-out and “your
coupons will be miraculously applied to your purchase”. It’s a frictionless
way to pass along savings, without all the clipping and paperwork.

One final note on Michelob
Lite. While their “You can’t have it all” spots failed, so has virtually every
other campaign they’ve tried over the years. (Remember, “Light up the night”? I
didn’t think so.) I’ll again let Hugh MacLeod weigh in on this less than
successful brand:

“Twenty-plus years after declaring their ability to
be all things to all people, that brand is still struggling, trying to be
something—anything—other than unexceptional.”

What about the companies, brands
and loyalty programs you work for and with: Do they offer a real point-of-difference?
Do your customers see them as exceptional?